Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Trading Up 5.3% After Insider Buying Activity

Shares of Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) traded up 5.3% during trading on Thursday following insider buying activity. The company traded as high as $5.41 and last traded at $5.37. 360,250 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 4,246,100 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.10.

Specifically, Director David M. Mott acquired 77,729 shares of Ardelyx stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $5.00 per share, for a total transaction of $388,645.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,015,494 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,077,470. The trade was a 4.01 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ARDX has been the topic of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Ardelyx from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. HC Wainwright restated a "neutral" rating and set a $5.50 target price on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup cut their price target on Ardelyx from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Raymond James reissued a "strong-buy" rating and set a $13.00 price objective (down previously from $15.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Ardelyx to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $9.93.

Ardelyx Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 4.31, a current ratio of 4.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of -31.75 and a beta of 0.85. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $5.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.61.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.02. The company had revenue of $116.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.16 million. Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 11.73% and a negative return on equity of 24.87%. Research analysts expect that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Ardelyx

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ARDX. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new stake in Ardelyx in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ardelyx in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Ardelyx in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ardelyx during the 4th quarter worth $51,000. Finally, Rehmann Capital Advisory Group acquired a new position in shares of Ardelyx during the fourth quarter worth $51,000. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ardelyx Company Profile

Ardelyx, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines to treat gastrointestinal and cardiorenal therapeutic areas in the United States and internationally. The company's lead product candidate is tenapanor for the treatment of patients with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation.